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[0:00] Well, good morning, everyone. It is indeed very different to be here with you than it is back in Florida. We had, it was 13 degrees as a low when we left.

[0:10] That was freezing for us, so this is very different. But we come to cool off, which is very nice for us. Well, just a quick note.

[0:22] We've known Pastor Dave and his wife, Chelsea, since they came to Expositors Seminary 15 years ago. And we love their family, and we knew the Lord would not keep them around very long because he's one of the choice servants of the Lord.

[0:39] And BK as well, having gotten to know him this past week, you all are a very blessed congregation. And I know this is a combined congregation between you and 99, but what a sweet time. And the Lord has sent you some really faithful shepherds.

[0:52] So it's just been very encouraging for me to be here and to see that. And I've been to a lot of places where the Word of God is not taught, but that is not the case in Squamish, and so we can rejoice in that.

[1:05] We've been praying for you all for a long time, and we've been praying for this area for a long time, that the Lord would stir up the souls of people's hearts to embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ.

[1:15] And it is for his name and for his name's sake that we live, is it not? Well, this morning, during this Christmas season, I'd like to give you a vision of hope.

[1:26] And not some cheap hope, but a sure and guaranteed hope. And the reason why I would like to give you a vision of hope this morning from the Scriptures is because I know that many of you are probably anxious.

[1:41] Because we're anxious in the States. I'm sure you're anxious here as well. You may be anxious at the amount of turmoil that you see in the world today. And we've had our own measure of turmoil. And from what I've read, you've had your own measure of turmoil as well.

[1:56] It seems as if Western culture is hanging by a thread. And in some ways, it is, isn't it? We've lost our way. But that was inevitable when the West pulled away from any sort of objective moral standard.

[2:12] We cannot abandon God and abandon his truth and not expect there to be severe consequences for that sort of foolishness. We are reaping what we have sown.

[2:24] And what we are reaping is a lot of instability. Instability unsettles us, doesn't it? We don't like instability. We don't like a future that looks bleak.

[2:37] Now, the reality for us who are Christians is that our future is actually very bright. We have a future that is going to exceed our wildest imagination.

[2:51] And yet, when we become focused on this life, on this world, on the here and now, when we become most concerned with losing our comforts, with not knowing how we're going to protect our families or what the future looks like, when we focus on the instability, what happens to us is we become tunnel visioned and we forget what awaits us.

[3:15] And so my prayer for this morning is to bring our minds back to what is true, that our hearts would be refocused on the sure and immovable hope that we have.

[3:27] And the way I want to show that to you this morning is to bring you to the culmination of human history that is still yet to come. The future has already been written.

[3:39] And so let's remember together what our future is, but most importantly, who our future is. So if you would, please turn in your Bibles to the book of Daniel.

[3:51] We're going to move around a little bit this morning. If you go to the middle of your Bible, that's Isaiah. And then keep moving to your right. You've got Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and then Daniel.

[4:03] Daniel is a fascinating book of the Bible. It has been called the Revelation of the Old Testament. There's a lot of end times truth.

[4:14] The big word for that is just eschatology. Eschatology is a big theological word for the study of the end times. And one of the themes of the book of Daniel is that God is sovereign.

[4:25] He's in control of every nation, every king, every empire, every kingdom that has ever existed. Daniel also was a fascinating figure in human history.

[4:36] He was extremely gifted. So much so that he was promoted to be second in command of two different world empires, the Babylonian Empire and the Persian Empire.

[4:47] And even with all that responsibility laid on his shoulders, even as being a Jew, one of God's people in a foreign land, he was still faithful to the Lord his whole life.

[5:01] And over the course of his life, Daniel received many visions from the Lord. And those visions pertain to what would happen in the future. And one of those visions that I would like for our hearts to focus on this morning is found in Daniel chapter 7.

[5:16] Daniel 7. It is a staggering vision of the future. And some of you may have read the book of Daniel and you may have said, what in the world is going on here?

[5:28] The book of Daniel admittedly can be very intimidating. And so my purpose this morning is not to inundate you because there's a lot of different directions we could go with this, but try to just stick with me because I think the payoff will be worth it for you in the end.

[5:44] So I want us to stay focused on a singular person this morning. And that person is referred to as being a son of man in Daniel 7 verse 13.

[5:55] But before we get to that vision, let me read the verses that are preceding that. It'll just give us an understanding of the context in which we find the Son of Man.

[6:08] Take a look at Daniel 7 verse 9. Daniel 7 verse 9. I kept looking until thrones were set up and the Ancient of Days took his seat.

[6:23] His vesture was like white snow and the hair of his head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames and its wheels were a burning fire.

[6:34] And a river of fire was flowing and coming out from before him. And thousands upon thousands were attending him. And myriads upon myriads were standing before him.

[6:46] And the court sat and the books were opened. What we have just read is a terrifying picture of the coming judgments of the Lord.

[6:59] This is the Ancient of Days himself. God the Father in all his blazing purity will take the seat on the throne of judgment.

[7:10] And the Father's throne is engulfed in fire and it has spinning wheels, spitting out fire. This might be a chariot throne. There's a river of fire flowing out from his throne.

[7:22] Myriads of angels will be there. The saints will be there watching. And the books will be opened. And the divine courtroom will be in session.

[7:32] And the Lord will judge his enemies. Now, we're not going to take a whole lot of time and spend on that. And we're not going to dive into every detail.

[7:45] What I wanted to give you was just a picture of that divine courtroom because it's important to understand that in the next passage we look at with the Son of Man, just know that judgment will come with the coming of the Son of Man.

[8:01] So now we get to verses 13 and 14, which brings us to this prophecy about the Son of Man. And there are two elements to this vision of the Son of Man in Daniel 7.

[8:12] And the first is the revealing of the Son of Man. Look at verse 13 of Daniel 7. I kept looking in the night visions and behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a Son of Man was coming.

[8:31] And he came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. Now, this vision is the pinnacle of the book of Daniel, just as it is the pinnacle of all of human history.

[8:45] And what is described in this passage is yet to come in the future. And when Daniel received this vision, it was more than 2,500 years ago.

[8:56] We are now more than 2,500 years removed from this vision. And so we are now closer to its fulfillment than ever before. Now, when did Daniel receive this vision?

[9:10] That'll help us with the timeline. Well, in verse 1 of chapter 7, it says that in the first year of Belshazzar, the king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed.

[9:25] The first year of the reign of Belshazzar, Belshazzar was a king of Babylon, the Babylonian Empire, and he gave Daniel this vision in 553 B.C., a long time ago.

[9:37] Notice what he says in verse 2. Daniel said, I was looking in my vision by night. Now look down at verse 9.

[9:49] Notice he says, I kept looking. So this is all the same vision. It's just different stages of the same vision. Verse 13, we're in our passage.

[10:01] I kept looking in the night visions. Again, the same vision. What Daniel is receiving is just an overwhelming barrage of prophetic visions. And each one, if you read through it, it's just, it's overwhelming.

[10:13] It's an assault on the senses. And each vision is so different. But what Daniel saw in verse 13 absolutely staggered him.

[10:25] Vision after vision. But this one just towers above the rest. Because he says in verse 13, I kept looking in the night visions. And behold, he doesn't say that for the first two visions.

[10:39] As incredible as the first two were, this one is different. This one stands out. It takes Daniel's breath away. And behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man was coming.

[10:58] Understand what Daniel is seeing here. He is taking in a vision, a full, broad panorama of heaven. How staggering that must have been in and of itself. But as he's looking, as he's taking in this indescribable glory and beauty and majesty of the throne room of God Almighty, behold, he sees a figure coming in the clouds, maybe in his periphery.

[11:24] And it's a human figure, but it's different, very different. Notice that Daniel does not say in verse 13, a son of man was coming.

[11:38] No, he says one like a son of man was coming. So on the one hand, this being has a human form like you and me, but on the other hand, he is entirely different than us.

[11:51] He is like a son of man. And already you perceive that Daniel is having trouble putting into words what he is seeing. And this was a normal problem for prophets.

[12:03] They use the words as and like a lot. The son of man, whoever he is, he's coming. He sees him coming.

[12:14] He's drawing near and he's coming with the clouds of heaven. Now, we know what clouds look like. You all see them a lot.

[12:25] We're very familiar with those. But in Scripture, when you see clouds attached to the divine, these are not the same clouds that we are used to.

[12:37] These are clouds of glory. For those of you, if you know your Bibles, you know in the end of the book of Exodus, in Exodus chapter 40, the children of Israel in the wilderness and they set up the tabernacle and in the end of the book of Exodus, there is a cloud and this cloud comes in and he covers the tabernacle and it says that the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle and Moses was not able to enter into the tabernacle because the cloud had settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

[13:07] This is, it's astonishing. It's too much. It's too much glory. Listen to the beginning of the book of Ezekiel. Another prophet, prophet Ezekiel, sees a cloud.

[13:21] He said, Ezekiel's standing there and he says, as I look, behold, a storm wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing forth continually and a bright light around it and in its midst something like glowing metal in the midst of the fire.

[13:36] If you all saw that coming, you all would run. These are not normal clouds. These are clouds of glory. Psalm 97.2 says that clouds and thick darkness surround Yahweh.

[13:53] Yahweh is just another name, an Old Testament name for God. Psalm 104.3 says that the Lord makes the clouds His chariots. So understanding that the presence of clouds clouds, right?

[14:09] Glory clouds indicates the presence of Almighty God. Then the fact that this, then our passage in Daniel 7 says that the Son of Man is coming with the clouds of heaven, that's unexpected because what you would expect to see is that the Ancient of Days would himself would be coming with the clouds of heaven.

[14:26] But it's not. It's this one like a Son of Man. That would indicate that this person that appears to be human is also divine.

[14:40] Yahweh is coming with the clouds of heaven. Verse 13, this one like a Son of Man was coming in the clouds and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him.

[14:56] Now remember, we saw back in verse 9 who the Ancient of Days was. He was the one who took His seat on this fiery throne. He's called the Ancient of Days because He's so old, He's beyond time.

[15:09] He's eternal. And that means that He has seen everything that's happened on this earth since its creation, since He created it, right? He's seen every empire, every ruler, every soul that's ever existed and He's sovereign over all of them.

[15:24] As a matter of fact, in Daniel 2.21, Daniel is praying to God. He's offering worship to Him and Daniel says this about the Lord. He says that it is He who changes the times and the ethics.

[15:35] He removes kings and He establishes kings. That's our God. Think about all the most powerful rulers of antiquity and the empires that they led and even up to the present day.

[15:49] David, Solomon, Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus the Great, Alexander the Great, Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Charlemagne, Louis XIV, Henry VIII, Napoleon, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, Donald Trump, Justin Trudeau.

[16:03] The Ancient of Days is the one who raises up every leader and brings them down. Their authority is a delegated authority. They arise because God decrees them to and they don't exist for one second longer than He has ordained.

[16:20] The sovereign power of the Ancient of Days is beyond comprehension. No one and no thing is outside of His eternal decree. His authority is complete and total and He is the only one capable of bestowing a kingdom to anyone.

[16:38] You see this theme continually throughout the book of Daniel. And one place you see this is with King Nebuchadnezzar. If you guys remember the story of King Nebuchadnezzar when he becomes a cow, right?

[16:49] At the end of that, in chapter 4, verse 34, He says this. He says this about the Lord. His dominion is an everlasting dominion and His kingdom endures from generation to generation.

[17:03] All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing. But He does according to His will and the host of heaven. Now, you're going to see that refrain about the dominion and the kingdom of the Lord in a minute, but it's going to come with a twist when it comes to this Son of Man.

[17:22] When you grasp the full power and the sovereign authority of Almighty God, that makes this event in Daniel 7 all the more spectacular and significant.

[17:36] Because if there's going to be a being that is presented before the Ancient of Days, right, presented before Him, you know that this Son of Man must be someone unique, very unique, and especially when you see that this one is coming with the clouds of heaven.

[17:52] Now, that brings us to the second element of this vision of the Son of Man, and that is the inheritance of the Son of Man. Take a look at verse 14. And to Him was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom that all the peoples, nations, and men of every language might serve Him.

[18:15] His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away, and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. The question is, is who in the world would the Ancient of Days allow to be presented before Him, much less receive that?

[18:34] Surely no ordinary human. Remember, I just read in chapter 4, verse 34, that all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing before Him, right? So, it can't be the same, it can't be the same person, it can't be like us, it has to be someone like a Son of Man.

[18:50] What does He receive? Dominion, glory, and a kingdom that all the peoples and nations and men of every language might serve Him. What does this Son of Man receive?

[19:03] Everything. He gets it all. Dominion is the authority to rule. Glory is glory, dignity, honor, and praise.

[19:17] He also receives a kingdom. This is very significant in the book of Daniel because the Lord bestows many different kingdoms to human rulers.

[19:30] But the kingdom that the Son of Man receives is different because in every kingdom, because in His kingdom, excuse me, every nation serves Him. Every person, no matter what language they speak, they all serve and they all submit to this one like a Son of Man.

[19:48] So, His authority is total. The entire creation serves Him. We have to conclude then that there are no challengers to His kingdom.

[20:00] There are no elections. There are no usurpers. There's no coups. There's no vice presidents. There's no princes. There's no successors. It's not needed. He has total dominion. Think about human empires, right?

[20:14] How many dominant human empires have ever existed and yet they've all had a shelf life, haven't they? The rulers are temporary for human kingdoms and the kingdoms are temporary in human kingdoms.

[20:28] But not the kingdom of the Son of Man, the one that the Ancient of Days gives Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away. And His kingdom endures from generation to generation.

[20:41] It's one that will not be destroyed. It's an eternal kingdom. Eternal means forever, right? I say that just to reinforce it in your mind.

[20:51] An eternal kingdom. And since His kingdom is eternal, then it stands to reason that this one like a Son of Man would also have to be eternal to reign over it.

[21:03] This event is the culmination of human history. When this one, like a Son of Man, receives His kingdom from the Ancient of Days, that's it.

[21:18] The domination of fallen humanity over this cursed earth, what we all know way far too well, right? This is our fishbowl, but when that happens, He takes over to rule and reign forever.

[21:29] However, nothing remains the same after that. When the Son of Man takes over, what we know now, what is very familiar to us now, is going to seem like a distant shadow in comparison to what is coming.

[21:48] Now, I want to go further with this. I'm going to ask you to stretch your brain a little bit with me this morning. You're already saying, I'm already doing that. I know. But I hope to expand your understanding of this vision of the identity and inheritance of the Son of Man with a few other passages, and one of which is just a mirror of Daniel 7.

[22:05] It's pretty fascinating. But before we move forward to these other passages, keep these two things in mind. First, the fact that the Son of Man is coming with the clouds is very important.

[22:17] We're going to see that again. And the second thing to remember is what He has given. dominion, glory, and a kingdom. And everybody's going to serve Him. Okay?

[22:29] So again, whoever this one like a Son of Man is, He must be someone who is of primary importance. And most of you know exactly who this is. You know who this is referring to.

[22:41] There's only one. There's many sons of men. But there's only one with a distinct title, the Son of Man. And that is our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus referred to Himself as the Son of Man in the Gospels more than any other title.

[22:57] Even more than calling Himself the Son of God. 82 times in the New Testament He calls Himself the Son of Man. And when Jesus called Himself the Son of Man, He's referring back to this prophecy in Daniel 7.

[23:11] Every time you read the Son of Man in the Gospels, you should think back to Daniel 7. There's so much wrapped up in this name, the Son of Man. It is a reference to His humanity, of course, right?

[23:24] Jesus came in the flesh as 1 John 4.2 describes. He is, of course, truly man. But He's so much more than that because He is like us. But as Daniel saw, He's so much unlike us because He is God and man.

[23:38] He is the God-man. Since Jesus is God, this Son of Man has authority that we don't have.

[23:50] As a matter of fact, in Matthew 9.6, Jesus is referring to Himself and He said that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. You and I can't say that, but He can.

[24:04] The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath in Matthew 12.8. In His first coming, right, what we're going to celebrate in Christmas, in His first coming, in the advent, Jesus was born.

[24:19] He lived a life, perfect life, and He suffered and died on a cross. What's amazing is is that the authority of the Son of Man extends even over death itself.

[24:33] In John 2.19, Jesus compared His body to the temple and He said, destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up and that is exactly what He did. Death is no longer master over Him and the resurrection proved it.

[24:49] He was raised from the dead. The Son of Man's authority also extends to judgment. In His first coming, He did not come to judge. He came to save.

[25:02] He has reserved judgment for His second coming. Listen to Matthew 16.27. Matthew 16.27, the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels and will then repay every man according to His deeds.

[25:22] He wasn't talking about the first coming, the second coming. So much wrapped up in this name, the Son of Man. In His first coming, the Son of Man came in humility, born in a stable in a manger, came to seek and save the lost.

[25:41] In His second coming, He's going to come in glory and power and every eye will see Him. Remember that I said in Daniel 7.13 that the Son of Man was coming with the clouds of heaven.

[25:56] Jesus happened to mention that in His trial. Turn over to Matthew 26, if you would with me. Matthew 26. Matthew 26, verse 63.

[26:11] Again, this is in His trial before the Sanhedrin. Matthew 26, verse 63.

[26:21] 62. The high priest stood up and said to Him, Do you not answer?

[26:32] What is it that these men are testifying against you? But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, I adjure you by the living God. Tell us whether you are the Christ, the Son of God.

[26:45] Are you the Messiah that was prophesied? And it's very interesting because Jesus' response to the high priest is something that we would not expect.

[26:56] The high priest is expecting a direct answer to a direct question. But Jesus goes in a bit of a different direction. What He does is He refers back to two Messianic prophecies.

[27:09] Psalm 110 and Daniel 7.13. Look at verse 64. Jesus said to Him, You've said it yourself.

[27:21] Nevertheless, I tell you, hereafter, you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven. Now, how did the high priest respond to that?

[27:37] Did He ask more questions? No. Verse 65, He tore His robes and said, He's blasphing. The high priest knew exactly what Jesus was referring to. He knew what He was saying when He called Himself the Son of Man.

[27:50] He knew Jesus was applying those Old Testament prophecies to Himself. It's interesting. That is a yet future fulfillment as well when Jesus comes in the clouds of heaven because He says, Hereafter, you'll see that.

[28:04] From now on, after my death, later, this will happen. Now, since this is all going to happen in the future which we've now established, according to Jesus Himself, it's appropriate that we now go to the last book in the Bible.

[28:19] Turn over to Revelation with me. Revelation chapter 4. We're getting a workout today. Revelation 4, verse 1.

[28:37] This is the Apostle John speaking. After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven.

[28:48] And the first voice which I heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things. And immediately I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and one sitting on the throne.

[29:05] And he who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance. And there was a rainbow around the throne like an emerald in appearance. Again, more likes and as, right?

[29:16] How do you describe that? There's 24 elders sitting around the throne. Look at verse 5. Out from the throne came flashes of lightning and peals of thunder.

[29:29] And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. And before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the center and around the throne four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.

[29:44] And you're like, what in the world is going on here? This is a vision of heaven. Just like Daniel got a vision of heaven, the apostle John is getting a vision of heaven. And he sees the Ancient of Days, God Almighty sitting on his throne, right?

[29:59] Back to Daniel 7. Verse 8 says that there are apparently there's four living creatures that constantly fly around the throne room of God, constantly, day and night.

[30:10] They do not cease to say, holy, holy, holy is the Lord, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come. All worship is directed to the one on the throne and that's right. This scene in Revelation 4 is essentially the same as what Daniel saw.

[30:28] And it could be, as has been suggested, is that Daniel is seeing this same event from one angle and the apostle John is seeing it from another angle. John is just as staggered by this vision as Daniel was because in verse 2, we read it.

[30:48] Immediately, I'm in the Spirit and behold. Daniel said the same thing. I can't take in what I'm seeing. It's beyond comprehension.

[31:02] The vision does not end there though. Look at chapter 5, verse 1. So, Daniel's seeing the Lord. I saw in the right hand of him, the Lord, who sat on the throne, a book written inside and on the back sealed up with seven seals.

[31:24] All right, let's picture this in our minds again. Almighty God sitting on his throne, all that glory, power, majesty, and in his hand, he's holding a scroll, a book. And the scroll is full of writing on the inside and on the back and this book is sealed up with seven seals.

[31:44] And so, what is this scroll? What is this book? This book is the title deed to the whole of creation. It is a book of dominion.

[31:55] It is a scroll of authority. And since that's the case, then of course, whose hand would it have to be in? The Ancient of Days, Almighty God, would have to be.

[32:06] Who else? Remember, he's the one who distributes dominion and authority to whomever he pleases. He's the one in control. Verse 2. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals.

[32:28] And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look into it. Get the picture now, right? The Ancient of Days is seated on his throne. John's seeing him, sees a big strong angel come into view and this angel just booms out with a loud voice.

[32:46] Who is worthy to take the book out of his hand? Who is worthy to open its seals? And it must have been a very powerful angel because it says that the whole of creation heard it.

[33:00] But after he speaks his question, silence. Complete silence. And after a period of time, it was determined that there was no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth who was worthy.

[33:21] On earth, no man, no prophet, no apostle was found. Moses' humility. Elijah's zeal. Paul's commitment.

[33:32] None of them measured up. Even in heaven, no angel spoke. Not even Gabriel. Not even Michael. Not even that strong angel. No one, no being in the entirety of creation was worthy to take the scroll out of the Father's hand, living or dead.

[33:49] So what does that mean? Does that mean that this creation, this fallen creation stays like it is forever? Do sin and evil continue to proliferate?

[34:05] Would judgment ever come? That's what you wonder, if that's what John might be thinking. Verse 4, John begins to sob uncontrollably because of the silence.

[34:27] From where is my help going to come, right? Is there no hope for this world? Verse 5, And one of the elders said to me, Stop weeping.

[34:39] Behold, the lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the root of David, he is overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals. Oh, there is hope. There is hope.

[34:51] The lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the root of David, there's our hope. He's the one who is worthy. He is overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.

[35:03] The lion from the tribe of Judah is a reference back to Genesis 49.9 when Jacob blesses his sons. It's reiterated in the prophecy of Balaam.

[35:15] As a lion, he will devour his enemies. The root of David is a fulfillment of the prophecy back in Isaiah 11, 1 through 10. And when you read that prophecy, it speaks too of judgment, a ruler, and a kingdom that is very different than our present age.

[35:33] The lion has overcome. He has conquered. He is worthy to open the book and its seven seals. Now, where was John when he heard that, right?

[35:43] Think about the anticipation of the apostle John at that point. What is he expecting to see? Verse 6, And I saw between the throne with the four living creatures and the elders a lamb standing as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

[36:07] Now, the elder just told John that it's the lion from the tribe of Judah. And what does John see but a lamb standing as if slain? And you ask, what does that look like?

[36:19] I have no idea. It's so unexpected though. We do know this though that Jesus was the lamb who takes away the sin of the world, right?

[36:32] What words could possibly describe the magnitude of this event? The significance of it? And from this passage we learn more about the identity of this son of man.

[36:44] He is also the lion from the tribe of Judah. He's the root of David and he's the lamb of God. And ironically, it was his death that conquered death. Only God could do that.

[36:59] He has seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. Horns are symbolic of authority. And as you study prophecy, you will find that the greatest and most powerful human ruler that will ever exist has yet to come.

[37:15] The most dominant king that will ever exist is the Antichrist. He's the best that humanity is going to come up with as a rebellion against God and he only has one horn. The lamb has seven.

[37:29] Seven is the number of perfection. His authority is complete and total. This lamb, this lion, this son of man is presented before the ancient of days and what happens next?

[37:44] Verse 7. And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him who sat on the throne. Can you imagine any created being trying to do that?

[37:56] Take the scroll out of the hand of the ancient of days? Not a chance. No one would be found worthy of that. No one would have the gall to even think they could do that. Only one can do this.

[38:10] Only one. The father would only allow his anointed one to take the scroll because he's the only one that is worthy and he has the scars to prove it. When the lamb takes the scroll out of the hand of the father, that marks the beginning of the present age which is called, ironically, the last days.

[38:33] We live in the last days. What happens in heaven when the son of man takes the scroll out of the hand of the ancient of days? The whole universe erupts in worship.

[38:47] Look at verse 8. When he had taken the book, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

[39:01] And they sang a new song saying, Worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals, for you were slain and purchased for God with your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.

[39:15] That's you and I. You've made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God and they will reign upon the earth. And then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders and the number of them was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing and you wonder if they ran out of words.

[39:42] Worship is the only thing that's appropriate for an event like that. We're going to worship the Lord because we're going to see it if you're in Christ. Now, notice what John says in verse 13.

[39:57] I'm just going to keep tying threads back to Daniel 7. Look what he says in verse 14. 13, excuse me.

[40:10] And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea and all things in them I heard saying to him who sits on the throne and to the lamb be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.

[40:27] And we're back to Daniel 7. Right? Dominion, glory, and a kingdom. 600 years of separation between Daniel's vision and John's vision and they say the exact same thing.

[40:41] Eternal dominion and glory to the Son of Man. A little bit more. Before we go forward in Revelation I want to go backward. Remember the relationship that the Apostle John had with our Lord.

[40:57] You read the book of 1 John and you're just struck with the love that John had for Jesus. Well here in the book of Revelation I want to show you what the Apostle John chose to focus on with regard to his first love.

[41:10] What prophecy about the Lord Jesus Christ stuck out most in his mind? Turn over to Revelation 1 and look at verse 5. Revelation 1, 5.

[41:30] And from Jesus Christ that's who we're talking about the faithful witness the firstborn of the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth rulers of prime ministers to him who loves us and released us from our sins by his blood and he has made us the saints he's made us to be a kingdom priest to God his father to him be the glory and dominion forever and ever.

[41:56] Sound familiar? Verse 7. Behold he's coming with the cloud and every eye will see him even those who pierced him and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over him so it is to be amen.

[42:14] There's our clouds again. This is the sign of the son of man. The whole earth will see him coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

[42:25] And you ask why did John put his focus on Daniel's prophecy? Why did he point that one out? Because Jesus did. Every time he referred to himself as the son of man 82 times in the gospel he had this event in mind the coming of his eternal kingdom.

[42:48] Okay now we can go to the end. Turn over to Revelation 19. Revelation 19. Revelation 19 verse 11.

[43:09] Revelation 19 11. And I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he who sat on it is called faithful and true and in righteousness he judges and wages war.

[43:23] His eyes are a flame of fire and on his head are many diadems and he has a name written on him which no one knows except himself. He's clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the word of God and the armies which are in heaven clothed in fine linen white and clean were following him on white horses.

[43:46] From his mouth comes a sharp sword so that with it he may strike down the nations and he will rule them with a rod of iron and he treads the winepress of the fierce wrath of God the almighty and on his name and on his thigh he has a name written king of kings and lord of lords.

[44:11] You read that description of our lord eyes a flame of fire on his head many crowns clothed with a robe dipped in blood and then you start to see why Daniel called him someone who was like a son of man.

[44:26] When Jesus Christ returns to this earth he is going to be terrifying for this world to behold terrifying and at his second coming when he comes in the clouds with power and great glory judgment and dominion are coming with him.

[44:43] The son of man the one who is called faithful and true he will judge and wage war in righteousness holy justice is coming to this world of darkness.

[44:56] Evil will finally be judged rebellion will be eradicated forever. If you are someone who has believed in Jesus Christ if you have believed the gospel then you are one of his chosen and you are going to see all of it as sure as I am standing here right now you will behold the heavenly scene when the Lamb of God takes the scroll out of the hand of the Ancient of Days.

[45:25] You will be one of those who is a soldier in the army of the Son of God clothed in white linen white and clean. You will be sinless and I will be sinless and that's going to make my wife rejoice.

[45:38] And you and I and all the saints are going to return to this earth from heaven with our Lord we are going to follow him on white horses.

[45:53] Come on. We may be in his army but it is the Son of Man who will wage war. And we are going to watch him slay his enemies with the breath of his mouth and he is going to strike down the nations that have foolishly opposed him and his coming.

[46:13] And what happens after that? Revelation 11.15 says that the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and he will reign forever and ever.

[46:25] After that the kingdom of the Son of Man begins and it never ends. No more human empires after that. No more kingdoms. That's it.

[46:37] Jesus rules over the whole earth dominion, glory and a kingdom and all the nations serve him. What will define his rule?

[46:49] He's going to judge between the nations. Isaiah 2.4 He's going to render decisions for many peoples. He's going to be a perfect ruler who's going to make perfect decisions. Don't we want that? Isaiah 9.7 There's going to be no end to the increase of his government or of peace on the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish it with justice and righteousness.

[47:11] Can you imagine a worldwide kingdom marked by justice and righteousness? We know nothing of that. What do we know? What do we see? What's our experience?

[47:22] Miscarriages of justice. Lawless judges. Perverse self-protecting rulers. Corruption. The most horrific acts of sin. Pedophilia. Mutilation of the young.

[47:33] destruction. Wars. Genocide. Evil. That's what we see. That's what we know. There's going to be none of that when the Son of Man takes His throne and His kingdom when He rules over the whole earth for a thousand years before the new heavens and the new earth.

[47:50] He's going to rule with a rod of iron. It will be a time of worldwide peace. God's people will rest in secure dwellings. We're going to have nothing to fear. We're going to experience continual joy that will never end.

[48:08] No more false religions. No more wicked rulers. No more corrupt leaders. Capitalism, socialism, communism. Those are gone. Out the window. Those are just constructs of men. They're going to become distant memories. Listen to Zechariah 14.9.

[48:25] The Lord Yahweh will be king over all the earth. And that day Yahweh will be the only one and His name the only one. The title of this sermon is Are You Ready?

[48:41] Are you ready for that? Are you ready for the coming of the Son of Man? Are you ready for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ to this earth because it's coming?

[48:53] Do you know Him? Have you believed the gospel? Are you one that's going to be coming on the horse? Or are you going to be judged? Jesus gave His life for you and for me.

[49:07] He gave His life for sinners which we all are. Have you bowed the knee to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? If you have then the question I want to ask you is is that where your hope lies?

[49:22] Is in the coming of the Son of Man or is it elsewhere? Are you fixated on the here and now and on this life? At the end of the book of Revelation our Lord Jesus says this He says yes I'm coming quickly He's coming soon justice and righteousness and His kingdom are coming with Him and should we then not respond in the same way?

[49:49] Amen Come Lord Jesus Let's pray Our Lord this is just overwhelming it's overwhelming to consider your return it's too much for us to take in Lord we especially see how often we forget you how little love we express to you how how little we obey you Father forgive us forgive us for our lack of focus on what we should be focused on Father we thank you for the shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ that's what we celebrate on Christmas it's not just a baby coming in a manger no no Lord that baby gave his very life for us so that we might live thank you that his blood covers our sin past present and future and it covers all of it thank you

[50:53]  Lord that when we stand before you we will not be judged because his righteousness covers us when we stand before you we have our Lord Jesus Christ saying he is mine she is mine how blessed we are Lord if there are any who do not know you in this room I pray they would bow to me today to you so they would not bow the knee in judgment Father we love you thank you for your son above all it's to him we worship him we praise and to him belongs all the glory dominion and honor amen man please